Bridget loses licence - Or maybe not

INQUIRY – TRAINER MS BRIDGET STIDOLPH

The National Horseracing Authority confirms that at an Inquiry held in Harare, Zimbabwe on Monday, 7 June 2021, Trainer Ms Bridget Stidolph was charged with a contravention of Rule 10.5.16.5. The particulars of the charge being that a Forbidden substance, namely, Depo-Testosterone was found on the premises of her Racing stables at Borrowdale Park Race Course on Sunday, 21 March 2021.

Ms Stidolph pleaded guilty to the charge and was found guilty as charged.

In determining a suitable penalty, the Inquiry Board considered all mitigating and aggravating factors, as well as the unique set of circumstances surrounding the horseracing industry and those that ply their trade in this industry in Zimbabwe.

The Inquiry Board ruled that Ms Stidolph’s Trainer’s Licence be cancelled, but that this sanction be suspended for a period of five years, on condition that she is not found guilty of a contravention of Rule 10.5.16.5 or any other Rule relating to Forbidden substances during this period. In addition, Ms Stidolph was fined the sum of R100 000,00 (one hundred thousand rand).

Ms Stidolph has the Right of Appeal against the severity of the penalty imposed

So the substance was found and not necessarily used.

License lost but pending 5 years.


R100,000 fine
That sounds heavy?

Suppose if you look at it as she can still train...

Wonder why they think the matter is big enough to warn her off, then "let her off" with a fine?

The press release is illuminating in the sense that it acknowledges the situation in Zimbabwe. I stand to be corrected but there are a total of 4 trainers in Zim and warning off 25% of the gene pool may have been catastrophic. It does however create a situation that the next SA trainer cannot be warned off as precedence has now been set. If you are not going to warn off a trainer for an anobolic steroid, what will you be warned off for? A more interesting question would be to determine if any of the steroid had been used and whether horses were tested for the presence of this steroid. Steroids are detectable for long periods of time so this should have been easy enough to determine.